{"id":1877408,"date":"2026-04-11T13:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-11T10:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1877408"},"modified":"2026-04-11T13:00:00","modified_gmt":"2026-04-11T10:00:00","slug":"how-iran-out-shitposted-the-white-house","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1877408","title":{"rendered":"How Iran out-shitposted the White House"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><main id=\"content\"><\/p>\n<div class>\n<article>\n<div class=\"duet--article--lede duet--page-layout--feature-article\">\n<div class=\"duet--ledes--feature-lede nebk4w0\">\n<div class=\"nebk4w1\">\n<div class=\"nebk4w6\">\n<div class=\"bu4cqq6 bu4cqq4\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"_1ymtmqp7\">\n<div class=\"nebk4w2 _1ymtmqp3\">\n<div class=\"nebk4w3 _1ymtmqpp\">\n<div class=\"_1p1nf4x0 _1p1nf4x1\">\n<div class=\"_1p1nf4x3\"><span class=\"_13g9mks17\"><\/p>\n<ul class=\"_1phh1th0\">\n<li>\n<div id=\"follow-category-breadcrumb_mobile-dmcyOmNhdGVnb3J5OjEwNg==\"><button aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-haspopup=\"true\"><span class=\"gnx4pm0 _4hoiss6 _1xwtict5 _1618ekm0\"><span class=\"_1ajq89kk _1ajq89k1 _1ajq89k0\"><\/span><span class=\"_1618ekm8\">Policy<\/span><\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<aside id=\"popover-dmcyOmNhdGVnb3J5OjEwNg==-breadcrumb\" style=\"position:absolute;left:0;top:0\" class=\"_1wu3rm0 _6ytxv90\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm1\"><button class=\"_1wu3rm3\"><title>Close<\/title><\/button><\/p>\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm5\">Policy<\/div>\n<p class=\"fv263x1\">Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n<p><button class=\"duet--cta--button _1f7jm891 _1f7jm890 fv263x2 _1f7jm89g\"><span><title>Follow<\/title><\/span><span>Follow<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"fv263x4\"><a class=\"fv263x5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/policy\">See All <!-- -->Policy<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div id=\"follow-category-breadcrumb_mobile-dmcyOmNhdGVnb3J5OjEwMg==\"><button aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-haspopup=\"true\"><span class=\"gnx4pm0 _4hoiss6 _1xwtict5 _1618ekm0\"><span class=\"_1ajq89kk _1ajq89k1 _1ajq89k0\"><\/span><span class=\"_1618ekm8\">AI<\/span><\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<aside id=\"popover-dmcyOmNhdGVnb3J5OjEwMg==-breadcrumb\" style=\"position:absolute;left:0;top:0\" class=\"_1wu3rm0 _6ytxv90\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm1\"><button class=\"_1wu3rm3\"><title>Close<\/title><\/button><\/p>\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm5\">AI<\/div>\n<p class=\"fv263x1\">Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n<p><button class=\"duet--cta--button _1f7jm891 _1f7jm890 fv263x2 _1f7jm89g\"><span><title>Follow<\/title><\/span><span>Follow<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"fv263x4\"><a class=\"fv263x5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/ai-artificial-intelligence\">See All <!-- -->AI<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div id=\"follow-category-breadcrumb_mobile-dmcyOmNhdGVnb3J5OjQ1Mw==\"><button aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-haspopup=\"true\"><span class=\"gnx4pm0 _4hoiss6 _1xwtict5 _1618ekm0\"><span class=\"_1ajq89kk _1ajq89k1 _1ajq89k0\"><\/span><span class=\"_1618ekm8\">Report<\/span><\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<aside id=\"popover-dmcyOmNhdGVnb3J5OjQ1Mw==-breadcrumb\" style=\"position:absolute;left:0;top:0\" class=\"_1wu3rm0 _6ytxv90\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm1\"><button class=\"_1wu3rm3\"><title>Close<\/title><\/button><\/p>\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm5\">Report<\/div>\n<p class=\"fv263x1\">Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n<p><button class=\"duet--cta--button _1f7jm891 _1f7jm890 fv263x2 _1f7jm89g\"><span><title>Follow<\/title><\/span><span>Follow<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"fv263x4\"><a class=\"fv263x5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/report\">See All <!-- -->Report<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><\/span><\/div>\n<div class>\n<h1 class=\"_8enl992 _8enl990 _8enl998 _1xwtictc _1xwtict9\">How Iran out-shitposted the White House<\/h1>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup _8enl99i _8enl99g _1xwtictc _1xwtict1\">\ufeffThe truth favored the Iranian regime. Rather than pivot from its playbook of fog and disinformation, it chose AI slop instead.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"_13g9mks2 _13g9mks0\">\n<div class=\"_13g9mks9\">\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-byline _1xwtictc _114qu8c0\"><span class><span>by<\/span> <!-- --> <span aria-expanded=\"false\" role=\"button\"><span id=\"follow-author-author_byline_lead_mobile-dmcyOmF1dGhvclByb2ZpbGU6MTE3OA==\" class=\"t0jcdf0 gnx4pm0 _114qu8c2 _114qu8c5 t0jcdf1\"><span class=\"t0jcdf2\"><span class=\"_1ajq89kk _1ajq89k1 _1ajq89k0\"><\/span><\/span><span>Sarah Jeong<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<aside id=\"popover-dmcyOmF1dGhvclByb2ZpbGU6MTE3OA==-author_byline_lead\" style=\"position:absolute;left:0;top:0\" class=\"_1wu3rm0 _6ytxv90\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm1\"><button class=\"_1wu3rm3\"><title>Close<\/title><\/button><\/p>\n<div class=\"_1bw37384\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Sarah Jeong\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"_1bw37385 x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/chorus\/author_profile_images\/195220\/jbareham_171019_2072_0099..0.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=0%2C0%2C100%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm5 _1bw37380\">Sarah Jeong<\/div>\n<div class=\"_1bw37381\">\n<div class=\"_1bw37382\">Features Editor<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"fv263x1\">Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n<p><button class=\"duet--cta--button _1f7jm891 _1f7jm890 fv263x2 _1f7jm89g\"><span><title>Follow<\/title><\/span><span>Follow<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"fv263x4\"><a class=\"fv263x5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/authors\/sarah-jeong\">See All by <!-- -->Sarah Jeong<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<p><\/span><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"duet--article--timestamp tvl9dp5 tvl9dp1 tvl9dp0 _1xwtict5 _1xwtictc\"><time datetime=\"2026-04-11T13:00:00+00:00\">Apr 11, 2026, 1:00 PM UTC<\/time><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"_13g9mksm _13g9mksw\">\n<div class=\"_13g9mksx\"><span class=\"_13g9mks17\"><\/p>\n<ul class=\"duet--article--share-buttons a8vjfv0\">\n<li>\n<div class=\"a8vjfvo\"><button aria-label=\"Copy link\" class=\"a8vjfv4 a8vjfv1\"><title>Link<\/title><\/button><\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li><button aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-haspopup=\"true\" aria-label=\"Share article\" class=\"a8vjfv4 a8vjfv1\"><title>Share<\/title><\/button><\/li>\n<li>\n<div><button aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-haspopup=\"true\" aria-label=\"Gift this article\" class=\"a8vjfv4 a8vjfv1\"><title>Gift<\/title><\/button><\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><\/span><span class=\"_13g9mks25 _1ymtmqpr _13g9mks17\"><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"_13g9mks19\">\n<div class=\"_10nsm938 _10nsm930 _10nsm932b\">\n<div class=\"_10nsm930 _10nsm93f _10nsm939\" data-concert=\"article_sponsorship_headline_above_mobile_and_tablet\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"_13g9mks1u _13g9mks1y\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"bu4cqq0\">\n<div class=\"nebk4w5 bu4cqq1\">\n<div class=\"_1ibjt4j0\">\n<div class=\"_1ibjt4j2 _1ibjt4j1 sticky-nav-trigger\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--layout--entry-image _1b9pgly0\">\n<div class=\"_1b9pgly1 _1b9pgly2\">\n<div class=\"_1ymtmqpn _1ymtmqpw\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Vrg_illo_k_radtke_shitpost_iran_white_house\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/Vrg_illo_k_radtke_shitpost_iran_white_house.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=24.9265625%2C0%2C60%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"_1ymtmqpm _1ymtmqpw\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Vrg_illo_k_radtke_shitpost_iran_white_house\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/Vrg_illo_k_radtke_shitpost_iran_white_house.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=24.9265625%2C0%2C60%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"nebk4w7\">\n<div class=\"duet--media--caption qama0i0\"><cite class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup _1xwtict2 qama0i5\"> Image: Kristen Radtke \/ The Verge; Getty Images<\/cite><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"nebk4w3 _1ymtmqpq\">\n<div class=\"_1p1nf4x0 _1p1nf4x1\">\n<div class=\"_1p1nf4x3\"><span class=\"_13g9mks17\"><\/p>\n<ul class=\"_1phh1th0\">\n<li>\n<div id=\"follow-category-breadcrumb_desktop-dmcyOmNhdGVnb3J5OjEwNg==\"><button aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-haspopup=\"true\"><span class=\"gnx4pm0 _4hoiss6 _1xwtict5 _1618ekm0\"><span class=\"_1ajq89kk _1ajq89k1 _1ajq89k0\"><\/span><span class=\"_1618ekm8\">Policy<\/span><\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<aside id=\"popover-dmcyOmNhdGVnb3J5OjEwNg==-breadcrumb\" style=\"position:absolute;left:0;top:0\" class=\"_1wu3rm0 _6ytxv90\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm1\"><button class=\"_1wu3rm3\"><title>Close<\/title><\/button><\/p>\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm5\">Policy<\/div>\n<p class=\"fv263x1\">Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n<p><button class=\"duet--cta--button _1f7jm891 _1f7jm890 fv263x2 _1f7jm89g\"><span><title>Follow<\/title><\/span><span>Follow<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"fv263x4\"><a class=\"fv263x5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/policy\">See All <!-- -->Policy<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div id=\"follow-category-breadcrumb_desktop-dmcyOmNhdGVnb3J5OjEwMg==\"><button aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-haspopup=\"true\"><span class=\"gnx4pm0 _4hoiss6 _1xwtict5 _1618ekm0\"><span class=\"_1ajq89kk _1ajq89k1 _1ajq89k0\"><\/span><span class=\"_1618ekm8\">AI<\/span><\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<aside id=\"popover-dmcyOmNhdGVnb3J5OjEwMg==-breadcrumb\" style=\"position:absolute;left:0;top:0\" class=\"_1wu3rm0 _6ytxv90\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm1\"><button class=\"_1wu3rm3\"><title>Close<\/title><\/button><\/p>\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm5\">AI<\/div>\n<p class=\"fv263x1\">Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n<p><button class=\"duet--cta--button _1f7jm891 _1f7jm890 fv263x2 _1f7jm89g\"><span><title>Follow<\/title><\/span><span>Follow<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"fv263x4\"><a class=\"fv263x5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/ai-artificial-intelligence\">See All <!-- -->AI<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div id=\"follow-category-breadcrumb_desktop-dmcyOmNhdGVnb3J5OjQ1Mw==\"><button aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-haspopup=\"true\"><span class=\"gnx4pm0 _4hoiss6 _1xwtict5 _1618ekm0\"><span class=\"_1ajq89kk _1ajq89k1 _1ajq89k0\"><\/span><span class=\"_1618ekm8\">Report<\/span><\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<aside id=\"popover-dmcyOmNhdGVnb3J5OjQ1Mw==-breadcrumb\" style=\"position:absolute;left:0;top:0\" class=\"_1wu3rm0 _6ytxv90\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm1\"><button class=\"_1wu3rm3\"><title>Close<\/title><\/button><\/p>\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm5\">Report<\/div>\n<p class=\"fv263x1\">Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n<p><button class=\"duet--cta--button _1f7jm891 _1f7jm890 fv263x2 _1f7jm89g\"><span><title>Follow<\/title><\/span><span>Follow<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"fv263x4\"><a class=\"fv263x5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/report\">See All <!-- -->Report<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><\/span><\/div>\n<div class>\n<h1 class=\"_8enl992 _8enl990 _8enl998 _1xwtictc _1xwtict9\">How Iran out-shitposted the White House<\/h1>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup _8enl99i _8enl99g _1xwtictc _1xwtict1\">\ufeffThe truth favored the Iranian regime. Rather than pivot from its playbook of fog and disinformation, it chose AI slop instead.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"_13g9mks2 _13g9mks0\">\n<div class=\"_13g9mks9\">\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-byline _1xwtictc _114qu8c0\"><span class><span>by<\/span> <!-- --> <span aria-expanded=\"false\" role=\"button\"><span id=\"follow-author-author_byline_lead_desktop-dmcyOmF1dGhvclByb2ZpbGU6MTE3OA==\" class=\"t0jcdf0 gnx4pm0 _114qu8c2 _114qu8c5 t0jcdf1\"><span class=\"t0jcdf2\"><span class=\"_1ajq89kk _1ajq89k1 _1ajq89k0\"><\/span><\/span><span>Sarah Jeong<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<aside id=\"popover-dmcyOmF1dGhvclByb2ZpbGU6MTE3OA==-author_byline_lead\" style=\"position:absolute;left:0;top:0\" class=\"_1wu3rm0 _6ytxv90\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm1\"><button class=\"_1wu3rm3\"><title>Close<\/title><\/button><\/p>\n<div class=\"_1bw37384\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Sarah Jeong\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"_1bw37385 x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/chorus\/author_profile_images\/195220\/jbareham_171019_2072_0099..0.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=0%2C0%2C100%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm5 _1bw37380\">Sarah Jeong<\/div>\n<div class=\"_1bw37381\">\n<div class=\"_1bw37382\">Features Editor<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"fv263x1\">Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n<p><button class=\"duet--cta--button _1f7jm891 _1f7jm890 fv263x2 _1f7jm89g\"><span><title>Follow<\/title><\/span><span>Follow<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"fv263x4\"><a class=\"fv263x5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/authors\/sarah-jeong\">See All by <!-- -->Sarah Jeong<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<p><\/span><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"duet--article--timestamp tvl9dp5 tvl9dp1 tvl9dp0 _1xwtict5 _1xwtictc\"><time datetime=\"2026-04-11T13:00:00+00:00\">Apr 11, 2026, 1:00 PM UTC<\/time><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"_13g9mksm _13g9mksw\">\n<div class=\"_13g9mksx\"><span class=\"_13g9mks17\"><\/p>\n<ul class=\"duet--article--share-buttons a8vjfv0\">\n<li>\n<div class=\"a8vjfvo\"><button aria-label=\"Copy link\" class=\"a8vjfv4 a8vjfv1\"><title>Link<\/title><\/button><\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li><button aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-haspopup=\"true\" aria-label=\"Share article\" class=\"a8vjfv4 a8vjfv1\"><title>Share<\/title><\/button><\/li>\n<li>\n<div><button aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-haspopup=\"true\" aria-label=\"Gift this article\" class=\"a8vjfv4 a8vjfv1\"><title>Gift<\/title><\/button><\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><\/span><span class=\"_13g9mks25 _1ymtmqpr _13g9mks17\"><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"_13g9mks1u _13g9mks1y\">\n<div class=\"_13g9mks1h\">\n<div class=\"_10nsm938 _10nsm930 _10nsm932c\">\n<div class=\"_10nsm930 _10nsm93d _10nsm939\" data-concert=\"article_sponsorship_headline_above_desktop\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--layout--entry-body-container _1t5ltw90 _1ymtmqp3 _1ymtmqp15\">\n<div class=\"_1t5ltw91\">\n<div class=\"duet--layout--entry-body _9f4de40\">\n<div class=\"duet--ledes--standard-lede-bottom\">\n<div class=\"_1o1f7ku5\">\n<div class=\"_1gmcxs22 _1gmcxs20\">\n<div class=\"_1n017go0 _1n017go1\">\n<div class=\"_1n017go3\"><a class=\"_1n017go6\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/authors\/sarah-jeong\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Sarah Jeong\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"36\" height=\"36\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"_1n017go4\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/chorus\/author_profile_images\/195220\/jbareham_171019_2072_0099..0.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=0%2C0%2C100%2C100&amp;w=96\"><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"_1n017go5\"><span aria-expanded=\"false\" role=\"button\"><span id=\"follow-author-standard_article_details-dmcyOmF1dGhvclByb2ZpbGU6MTE3OA==\" class=\"t0jcdf0 gnx4pm0 _114qu8c2 _114qu8c3 t0jcdf1\"><span class=\"t0jcdf2\"><span class=\"_1ajq89k1 _1ajq89k0\"><\/span><\/span><span>Sarah Jeong<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<aside id=\"popover-dmcyOmF1dGhvclByb2ZpbGU6MTE3OA==-standard_article_details\" style=\"position:absolute;left:0;top:0\" class=\"_1wu3rm0 _6ytxv90\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm1\"><button class=\"_1wu3rm3\"><title>Close<\/title><\/button><\/p>\n<div class=\"_1bw37384\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Sarah Jeong\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"_1bw37385 x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/chorus\/author_profile_images\/195220\/jbareham_171019_2072_0099..0.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=0%2C0%2C100%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm5 _1bw37380\">Sarah Jeong<\/div>\n<div class=\"_1bw37381\"><\/div>\n<p class=\"fv263x1\">Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n<p><button class=\"duet--cta--button _1f7jm891 _1f7jm890 fv263x2 _1f7jm89g\"><span><title>Follow<\/title><\/span><span>Follow<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"fv263x4\"><a class=\"fv263x5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/authors\/sarah-jeong\">See All by <!-- -->Sarah Jeong<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<p> <span class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup _1n017go7\">is a reporter who writes about law, technology, speech, and democracy. A journalist trained as a lawyer, she has been writing about tech for 10 years.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"zephr-anchor\" class=\"_1ymtmqp11\">\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy2 _17nnmdy0 _17nnmdy7 _17nnmdy5 _1xwtict1 _17nnmdyb\">In the early days of the war on Iran, while the White House was busy posting <em>Call of Duty<\/em> memes and <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/WhiteHouse\/status\/2031895801064985021\">AI slop<\/a> of dancing bowling pins, the Iranian regime\u2019s state media was flooding the zone with video after video of what was happening on the ground: <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/IrnaEnglish\/status\/2032397357061406889\/video\/1\">Explosions over Tehran<\/a>. <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/IrnaEnglish\/status\/2032489500895568281\/video\/1\">Smoke billowing in the sky<\/a>. <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/IrnaEnglish\/status\/2032403589402923228\/photo\/1\">Blood on the ground<\/a>. <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/iribnews_irib\/status\/2030731391046910396\/video\/1\">A Tomahawk missile landing on a school<\/a>. <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/Iran_GOV\/status\/2031862622761447502\/video\/1\">Grieving parents burying their children<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">Only weeks prior, the authoritarian regime had been struggling to shut down all footage of the protests convulsing the nation, cutting off internet access to the outside world in the longest blackout in Iranian history. When Iranian dissidents managed to circumvent the blackout to post photos and videos of what was happening, the regime decried these images as Zionist AI slop, even as it admitted to killing thousands of protesters.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">Then, on February 28th, the United States and Israel launched a surprise attack on Iran, killing thousands, including civilians. Now the shoe was on the other foot: As the victims of an illegal war, reality was now the best possible propaganda for the Iranian regime, and Iranian state media found itself hard at work trying to tell the truth, disseminating high-definition videos of American-wrought carnage.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">Prior to the attacks, it looked as though some connectivity was returning to Iran, but as bombs fell, the blackout was once again in place. However, there were some early suggestions that Iran was going to selectively lift the blackout \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/carnegieendowment.org\/research\/2026\/03\/iran-wields-wartime-internet-access-as-a-political-tool\">for those who can carry our voice further<\/a>\u201d \u2014 a kind of tiered internet access for whitelisted people willing to promote, at the very least, an anti-war message. No one could have foreseen what would happen next.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">By mid-March, the most dominant strain of Iranian propaganda was of a markedly different tone. Little Lego minifigures dressed up as soldiers as Lego planes and Lego helicopters burn in an AI-generated desert. Videos crammed in references to Jeffrey Epstein and dead Iranian schoolgirls alongside guns and explosions. It turned out that Lego AI slop was the voice that would carry the farthest.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--block-placement _1o279nj2 _1o279nj0 duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-pullquote qnnwq0\">\n<div class=\"qnnwq1\"><\/div>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup qnnwq2 _1xwtict9\">It turned out that Lego AI slop was the voice that would carry the farthest<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">The two great conflicts of this decade up until this point have been in Ukraine and Gaza, and both were accompanied by an onslaught of authentic documentation of missile strikes, shelled-out buildings, and dead bodies. An uncanny amount of this footage came from civilians turned into <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/c\/22971491\/ukraine-tiktok-influencers-russian-invasion\">unwilling war correspondents<\/a>. For a brief moment in time, the Iran war looked like it might follow a similar pattern, as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/03\/03\/world\/middleeast\/iran-school-bombing-children.html\">a missile strike on a school in Minab<\/a> killed 175 people, including schoolchildren. Photos of the destroyed school and aerial footage of graves being dug for the children became emblematic of the unjustness of the war. But even as these images spread, the internet blackout remained in place. Although Minab continues to be a rallying cry for Iranian state media, its outward-facing propaganda strategy started to look a lot like they were just trying to out-shitpost the American government.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">Iran lacked America\u2019s military resources, but it had other cards to play. Its stranglehold over the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ft.com\/content\/175a9a69-4026-4680-9d9f-14ead972f5b1?syn-25a6b1a6=1\">Strait of Hormuz<\/a> turned into a crisis that might <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ft.com\/content\/2c895663-16d5-4b7a-8c9b-45204c362c84\">permanently reshape<\/a> the global economy. As gas prices soared, Donald Trump spiraled, issuing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2026\/04\/05\/nx-s1-5774368\/iran-war-updates\">an apocalyptic ultimatum on Truth Social<\/a> demanding that Iran open the Strait lest America consign them to \u201cliving in hell.\u201d Days later, the nations reached a conditional ceasefire deal \u2014 one where Iran\u2019s demands are <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2026\/apr\/08\/iran-10-point-plan-ceasefire-donald-trump-us\">the starting point<\/a> for negotiations. The regime\u2019s posting game seemed to live rent-free in Trump\u2019s head, with the president <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/@realDonaldTrump\/posts\/116381349587924418\">posting on Truth Social<\/a> on Friday morning, \u201cThe Iranians are better at handling the Fake News Media, and \u2018Public Relations,\u2019 than they are at fighting!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">The story of the ceasefire is the story of the MAGA\u2019s insular, far-too-online bubble crashing and burning against the formidable force that is ocean geography. It would be far too much to say that Iran shitposted its way into a favorable ceasefire. But the Lego AI slop didn\u2019t <em>not <\/em>work.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--block-placement _1o279nj1 _1o279nj0 duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<hr class=\"duet--article--divider _1ymtmqpj _1s2qrmb0\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _17nnmdy6 _17nnmdy5 _1xwtict1\">Lego AI slop propaganda from what may or may not be Iranian state media: This is a surreal sequence of words that should never have been written. A representative of Explosive Media \u2014 the team behind the Lego videos \u2014 told <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newyorker.com\/culture\/infinite-scroll\/the-team-behind-a-pro-iran-lego-themed-viral-video-campaign?_sp=ac634850-d9be-4cc5-a656-2fa0d1e7ed93.1775644294556\"><em>The New Yorker<\/em><\/a> that it wasn\u2019t affiliated with the regime, arguing, \u201cIs there any way to prove that you are not connected to Jennifer Lawrence?!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">The group also told <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/ai-meme-war-iran-trump-6622aa77b833cbd470b53ed7d43be9bd\"><em>The Associated Press<\/em><\/a> that it was producing from inside Iran, though it claimed, \u201cWe\u2019re just a group of friends working voluntarily \u2014 paying for our own internet, using our own laptops and computers, and doing all of this ourselves.\u201d If it\u2019s true that they are inside Iran\u2019s borders, it\u2019s highly likely that they have whitelisted internet access. Without being sanctioned by the regime, it would be difficult to have enough connectivity to upload these videos, and almost impossible to manufacture them in the first place.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">\u201cOver the past 15 years, Khamenei made sure sufficient money, talent, and institutional priority flowed toward digital content creation,\u201d Narges Bajoghli writes in <a href=\"https:\/\/nymag.com\/intelligencer\/article\/iran-revolutionary-guard-social-media-behind-the-scenes.html?isNewSocialUser=false&amp;providerId=google.com\"><em>New York<\/em><\/a>. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps \u201coperates or funds at least 50 production houses,\u201d and the most significant ones in this moment are the little ones, \u201csmall, fast, and built for the internet, made by a new generation coming to power in Iran as American-Israeli bombs kill off the elder leaders \u2014 one that is younger, savvier, and less afraid of the US.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">\u201cThese freelance studios,\u201d Bajoghli writes, \u201care not \u2018official\u2019 IRGC channels but rather produce media for the broader media arms of the state, and they receive funding from both the IRGC and other coffers of the state and military establishments.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">Sourced at one of these smaller production houses, Bajoghli describes how the new generation was already waiting in the wings, ready to make content. They had long since been proficient in making \u201cvideos with faster cuts and a sense of irreverence,\u201d but the IRGC had previously dismissed the videos as not being \u201cserious enough.\u201d The war became their opportunity to shine.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">Whether or not Explosive Media is one of these state-sponsored studios, state accounts \u2014 like those belonging to Iranian embassies around the world \u2014 were nevertheless <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/IranembTun\/status\/2040707321056076097\/video\/1\">reposting its Lego videos<\/a>. And it wasn\u2019t just the Lego videos that formed the great Slop Wave coming from Iranian state accounts.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">\u201cAmerican soldiers, you\u2019re fighting for JEFFREY EPSTEIN,\u201d posted the <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/IranembTun\/status\/2041493030364959037\">Iranian embassy in Tunis<\/a>, over a clipshow of deepfaked American soldiers. The <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/IRAN_in_NL\/status\/2032008734445076877\">Iranian embassy in The Hague<\/a> mocked Trump with Pixar-esque AI slop of the president; the <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/IraninSA\/status\/2037495253599388090\">Iranian embassy in South Africa<\/a> reheated a stale TikTok meme from 2020 to depict an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps officer \u2014 seemingly IRGC spokesperson <a href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/tv\/news\/iran-military-spokesman-mock-trump-fired-video-b2943840.html\">Ebrahim Zolfaghari<\/a>, who makes regular appearances in state media.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--block-placement _1o279nj1 _1o279nj0 duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<div class=\"_199bv1dd\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">Those who stared too long into the Lego abyss came out sounding completely deranged. \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.404media.co\/iran-is-winning-the-ai-slop-propaganda-war\/\">Iran Is Winning the AI Slop Propaganda War<\/a>,\u201d <em>404 Media<\/em> declared glumly. But what war was that, exactly?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">While the White House was posting <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usnews.com\/news\/politics\/articles\/2026-03-07\/spongebob-iron-man-and-call-of-duty-inside-the-us-meme-war-against-iran\"><em>SpongeBob SquarePants<\/em> memes<\/a> for its own base, the Lego slop obviously isn\u2019t intended for Iranians in Iran, says Afsaneh Rigot, a scholar and researcher who has worked on human rights issues in the Middle East and North Africa for many years. The internet blackout is still ongoing. Although Iranians are still able to secure tiny pockets of access here and there between VPNs, \u201cthey\u2019re not going to be wasting their tiny bit of access trying to load something like\u201d a Lego slop video.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">As bizarre as they were, the videos were resonating with a certain audience. \u201cThere\u2019s a really, really deep understanding of the social media sentiment right now, and the global sentiment,\u201d said Rigot. The White House is addicted to brainrot that projects power, dominance, and cruelty. \u201cThese propaganda videos have read the sentiment that there is a desire for the opposite \u2014 like a fight back against oppression.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">\u201cMost people won\u2019t know what\u2019s going on in Iran,\u201d says Rigot. \u201cBut they would have known what\u2019s going on in their own neighboring countries in Latin America. Maybe they might have known what has happened to their own historical lineage and ancestors.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">Iran has \u201cclearly been winning\u201d when it comes to meme warfare, says Mahsa Alimardani, the associate director of the Technology Threats &amp; Opportunities program at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.witness.org\/portfolio_page\/mahsa-alimardani\/\">WITNESS<\/a>. \u201cThey\u2019ve been resonating internationally.\u201d She described visiting Morocco weeks ago, and how every time she mentioned she was Iranian, people would thank her for the Islamic Republic\u2019s work. It was depressing for Alimardani, who has long been critical of the Iranian government. \u201cInternational solidarity with the regime has never been higher.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--block-placement _1o279nj2 _1o279nj0 duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-pullquote qnnwq0\">\n<div class=\"qnnwq1\"><\/div>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup qnnwq2 _1xwtict9\">A perfect propaganda moment <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">The Lego brainrot feels true to a real global constituency primed to despise America for all kinds of reasons. Iran\u2019s regime has \u201ccreated its identity around being a representative for the oppressed, being a representative for the global majority,\u201d says Alimardani. The war set up a \u201cperfect propaganda moment for them, where they are actually in a position where they\u2019re being attacked.\u201d For over four decades, she says, the regime\u2019s ideology and politics have revolved around the notion that the evil American empire and Israel are victimizing Iran. Now, that message has never been more on the nose.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">Iran is a complicated place \u2014 a fascist authoritarian state that meets dissent with violence, as well as a marginalized country whose earnest attempts at self-determination have been <a href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2019\/01\/31\/690363402\/how-the-cia-overthrew-irans-democracy-in-four-days\">historically undermined by Western governments<\/a> through covert operations. In the world of AI slop, everything is blurred, smoothed out, and unserious. Brainrot is about vibes, not facts. There is no need to grapple with the complexities of Iran when all you care about is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/policy\/798491\/frog-portland-trump-national-guard\">aura farming and shitposting<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">Throughout all of this, many <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/iribnews_irib\/media\">state media accounts<\/a> were still, for the most part, posting non-brainrot. But the tone of these accounts, too, had shifted since the early days of the war. More recent videos of death, destruction, and ruin tended less and less to be images of atrocities inflicted on Iran. They were instead pictures of downed Black Hawks and purported strikes on Tel Aviv, propaganda much closer to posturing than humanitarian documentation.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">\u201cThey\u2019re trying to maintain an image of strength, that the regime is still standing,\u201d says Rigot. This is in character for the regime; for decades, projecting strength and power has been essential to how Tehran speaks to the outside world. And this time, they were speaking on the same frequency as the White House, in a language that Trump could understand.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--block-placement _1o279nj1 _1o279nj0 duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<hr class=\"duet--article--divider _1ymtmqpj _1s2qrmb0\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _17nnmdy6 _17nnmdy5 _1xwtict1\">The Minab strike was one of the first bombings on February 28th. When authentic footage of the Minab strike circulated on X, users accused the videos of being AI. Drone footage in Minab showed rows and rows of graves being dug for the victims killed in the strike, many of whom were schoolchildren. This footage, too, was accused of being AI-generated.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">As photos, videos, and other documentation from Minab went viral on social media, the truth became Iran\u2019s greatest asset. But telling the truth does not come naturally to the Iranian state. In the wake of the Minab strike, the Iranian embassy in Austria <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/IraninAustria\/status\/2027843033668993263?s=20\">posted a deepfake<\/a> of a child\u2019s backpack covered in blood; a Google SynthID watermark confirmed that the image was a fake. Iran\u2019s South African embassy \u2014 perhaps the weirdest of its embassy accounts on X \u2014 posted a <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/IraninSA\/status\/2030038660578435495\/video\/1\">Ghiblified tribute<\/a> to the young victims of the strike.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--block-placement _1o279nj1 _1o279nj0 duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<div class=\"_199bv1dd\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">But many of the other posts by state accounts appeared to contain authentic media, including videos of grieving parents. These accounts were simply busy posting what served them best, whether real or fake. And in that moment, what served their interests happened to be real documentation of the war. Conversely, what was in the interest of the regime\u2019s enemies was to sow doubt through an AI fog of war.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">This isn\u2019t the first conflict in which the uncertainty created by deepfake technology has made it difficult to know what is or isn\u2019t happening, where AI is used to generate disinformation while accusations of deepfaking are used to bury the truth. This happened during the still-ongoing invasion of Ukraine by Russia; it also happened during the 12-day war between Israel and Iran in June 2025.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">Mahsa Alimardani says that this time, the level of AI fog she saw was \u201cliterally quite unprecedented.\u201d The deepfakes rapid response force she works with at WITNESS, which helps journalists and fact-checkers to analyze content suspected of being AI-generated or manipulated, found it difficult to keep up with the AI escalations they received.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">The increasingly widespread availability of AI tools accounts for part of this surge, but on top of that, Iran is, in Alimardani\u2019s words, a \u201cweird laboratory of just so many different actors trying to pursue all kinds of disinformation and so many different kinds of influence operations.\u201d The state of Israel is known to have used AI-generated disinformation, especially during the 12-day war. One video that went viral in June 2025 showed an Israeli strike on the entrance of Iran\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/citizen-lab-disinformation-campaign-israel-iran-evin-prison\/\">Evin Prison<\/a>, a facility known to incarcerate political prisoners. The footage implied that the prisoners had been freed by the strike, but it was a deepfake. Israel had actually bombed Evin, but the ugly truth was that prisoners had died in the strike.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--block-placement _1o279nj1 _1o279nj0 duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<div class=\"duet--article--related _1ymtmqpj _1m6r73h0\">\n<h3 class=\"_1m6r73h1\">Related<\/h3>\n<ul class=\"_1m6r73h4\">\n<li class=\"_1m6r73h7 _1m6r73h6\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/ai-artificial-intelligence\/909948\/explosive-media-lego-iran-war-trump-netanyahu\" class=\"_1m6r73h9\">The Iranian Lego AI video creators credit their virality to \u2018heart\u2019<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"_1m6r73h7 _1m6r73h6\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/policy\/871848\/iran-blackout-internet-mahsa-alimardani\" class=\"_1m6r73h9\">Shedding light on Iran\u2019s longest internet blackout<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">The circulation of deceptive AI propaganda by its geopolitical enemies set the stage for the Iranian regime to dismiss <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/policy\/871848\/iran-blackout-internet-mahsa-alimardani\">images and videos of massive protests in January<\/a> as Zionist slop. But long before deepfake technology became readily accessible, the information environment in, around, and originating from Iran was already deeply poisoned. The Iranian regime has been elbow-deep in influence operations for many years; back in 2018, Facebook and Twitter deleted thousands of accounts originating in Russia and Iran that comprised a global influence network pushing disinformation. Russia partnered with Iran during the Syrian civil war, a messy multilateral conflict that generated massive amounts of online disinformation.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">At the same time, the Iranian government has used strategic internet shutdowns to control the flow of information in and out of the country \u2014 any upswell of internal dissent in Iran meant a blackout was bound to follow. When the regime felt threatened by widespread adoption of platforms like Telegram or Instagram, these apps would be shut down within Iran\u2019s borders. The regime is well versed in sowing doubt, spreading disinformation, and leveraging censorship.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">In such a poisoned information environment, for the individual person, the value of documentary evidence declines, and it becomes even easier for personal beliefs to outweigh extrinsic evidence. Iranians like Bajoghli have written about the <a href=\"https:\/\/nymag.com\/intelligencer\/article\/iranian-diaspora-fights-iran-war.html\">infighting in the diaspora<\/a>, in which the veracity of the Minab bombing is often a touchy subject. Alimardani has seen people she knows call the drone footage of the Minab school burials AI, even though it has been verified as authentic. \u201cThat is a very emotional reaction, seeing the regime allow for the burials of these kids when like a couple months ago the parents of the children that were killed in the protests couldn\u2019t even get the bodies of their children and couldn\u2019t actually properly mourn their children. So, it\u2019s like this emotional reaction to hypocrisy. Then you put AI into the mix and it just helps you go down your own rabbit hole.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--block-placement _1o279nj1 _1o279nj0 duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<div class=\"_199bv1dd\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">Something like the Minab case, says Rigot, requires a great deal of work and some time for teams of experts to do verification and promulgate correct information.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">\u201cBut at that point, initial denial has happened in the psyche of all of the people that have received that message,\u201d she says. \u201cThe damage is done. The damage to the families, the damage is done to those who have suffered, the damage is done to those of us who are trying to do documentation.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">The seed of doubt is easily planted because the Iranian regime is not trustworthy. \u201cThe regime are liars,\u201d says Alimardani. \u201cThey kill people. They compromise lives.\u201d Somewhere between 3,000 and 30,000 Iranians were killed by the regime in the early months of this year; in the lead-up to the war, Trump cited the brutal crackdown on the protests as a reason to attack Iran.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.en-hrana.org\/day-39-of-u-s-and-israeli-attacks-on-iran-extensive-damage-to-the-rail-network-and-roads\/\">Thousands of Iranians<\/a> are now dead in the wake of the US-Israel attacks. \u201cTwo things can be true at the same time,\u201d Alimardani says. \u201cYou have horrific tragedy and you have a regime using that horrific tragedy for its propaganda.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">As propaganda merged with reality, it was increasingly in Iran\u2019s interest to simply tell the truth, and to tell as much of it as possible. But after decades of using disinformation, internet blackouts, platform bans, and physical coercion to cement its power, the Iranian government struggled to pivot. Shutting down the flow of information has been the regime\u2019s primary modus operandi for as long as anyone can remember. Spreading information, and spreading as much of it as quickly as possible, has not been its forte, and the lack of experience \u2014 and, perhaps, reflexive fear of the free flow of information \u2014 was showing.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--block-placement _1o279nj2 _1o279nj0 duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-pullquote qnnwq0\">\n<div class=\"qnnwq1\"><\/div>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup qnnwq2 _1xwtict9\">\u201cYou have horrific tragedy and you have a regime using that horrific tragedy for its propaganda.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">On March 3rd, an OSINT account on X began to circulate a video showing Tehran\u2019s iconic Azadi Square, surrounded by smoke and flames on the horizon. Alimardani was particularly struck by the quality of the video. Material put out by the regime just months prior, she said, \u201clooked like it could have been made in the \u201990s,\u201d but state media was now \u201cdevoting the best equipment to capture the destruction that\u2019s happening right now.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">In fact, the footage looked so slick that it was immediately accused of being AI-generated.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">The <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/Osint613\/status\/2028878393886871823\">video<\/a> is watermarked with the name and logo of Tebyan, a state media organization, but it was spread mostly through OSINT accounts or journalists based in the West. When one Iranian state account posted the video, it was as a grainy copy that cropped out the Tebyan watermark. In fact, some Iranian state accounts appear to be gathering and reposting OSINT videos from a variety of sources, behaving like social media aggregators rather than directly broadcasting footage that they are, theoretically, in the best possible position to be gathering.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">But as the war progressed, the kinds of posts coming from state accounts were shifting. Instead of flames billowing over Tehran\u2019s cityscape, they were posting <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/iribnews_irib\/status\/2038230166913298544\/photo\/1\">aerial footage of successful strikes<\/a> on US military logistics. Images referencing the strike on Minab are scattered throughout posts from state accounts, but the bombing of Minab exists more as a symbol \u2014 cartoons of children and deepfaked dust-covered backpacks \u2014 than in documentary evidence. And the reality and tragedy of Minab is not sacred \u2014 one of the viral Lego slop videos depicts Lego Trump enraged at a Lego folder labeled \u201cJeffrey Epstein File,\u201d prompting him to angrily push a button that launches a missile at a classroom of Lego schoolgirls.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--block-placement _1o279nj1 _1o279nj0 duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<hr class=\"duet--article--divider _1ymtmqpj _1s2qrmb0\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _17nnmdy6 _17nnmdy5 _1xwtict1\">It\u2019s impossible to look at Iran\u2019s Lego AI slop and not see the parallels to the White House\u2019s <em>Pok\u00e9mon<\/em> deportation memes. \u201c[T]he Lego videos have succeeded, in part, because they meet the political discourse on the level to which it has already sunk,\u201d Kyle Chayka writes in <em>The New Yorker<\/em>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">These deranged online dynamics are bad enough in isolation. When viewed in context, the cursedness of it all multiplies. Sinking to new depths has been the most consistent theme of the 2026 Iran war.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">Only a week after an ICE agent killed Renee Good <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/policy\/859055\/minneapolis-renee-good-ice-shooting\">in Minneapolis<\/a>, the president told Iranian protesters that \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/iran-protests-trump-80f937dfbb3e04e5322dae30db3ad4b3\">help is on its way<\/a>,\u201d part of many early rumblings in the lead-up to the bombings. As the American government violently suppressed its dissidents, it used the suppression of dissent in Iran as an excuse to invade the other country. And when it did, it killed more Iranians.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">Iran has accused the US and Israel of <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/IrnaEnglish\/status\/2042233491316695490\/video\/1\">committing war crimes<\/a> and the international crime of aggression \u2014 a sound accusation, and one that is being made by a regime that itself has a long-standing record of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ohchr.org\/sites\/default\/files\/documents\/countries\/iran\/20240717-SR-Iran-Findings.pdf\">atrocity crimes<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amnesty.org\/en\/latest\/news\/2026\/04\/iran-recruitment-of-child-soldiers-as-young-as-12-amounts-to-a-war-crime\/\">other human rights violations<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">\u201cIt\u2019s depressing because there are no good actors,\u201d says Rigot.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">Reports indicated that in some places in Iran, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2026\/apr\/03\/iran-turkey-kapikoy-border-crossing-war\">there were no sirens<\/a>, no designated shelters or evacuation zones. While the bombings were underway, says Rigot, \u201cYou do not know who is safe, you do not know where they are, you do not know exactly what\u2019s happening.\u201d During this period, many Iranian civilians were in the dark about where to go during the bombings. \u201cIsrael is giving out evacuation notices to a country that has no access to information.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">Iranians have, over the years, become extremely savvy with using VPNs and circumventing the shutdown in various ways. But information about bombings operates on a different timeline than other kinds of data. No one can afford to have an evacuation notice trickle out little by little. By locking down access to the outside world during the war, Iran aggravated what was already a humanitarian crisis, even as it accused its enemies of perpetrating war crimes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">The Iranian regime toiled over the course of decades to build out its capacity to control the internet within its own borders. The architecture it has built is \u201cvery similar to what China has, very similar to what at the moment Russia is trying to establish,\u201d says Azadeh Akbari, a professor at Goethe University Frankfurt. \u201cIt gives [the regime] unprecedented access to data transfer and data packages between people.\u201d By centralizing control of the internet, the regime was also able to privilege bandwidth toward local apps and platforms, shifting data and activity away from the outside even when not in an active internet blackout.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _1xwtict1\">How America has fared in the Iran war has far more to do with the Strait of Hormuz than anything else, but it\u2019s likely that the world \u2014 particularly governments of a repressive bent \u2014 will come away with all the wrong conclusions about how to wage information warfare. What Iran has built \u2014 a locked-down architecture, a poisoned information environment, an inexhaustible slop machine \u2014 was not necessarily better or stronger than the alternative. But so long as war is treated as an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/policy\/858075\/trump-venezuela-maduro-kidnapping-spectacle\">online spectacle<\/a>, rather than the hard reality of civilians trying to suss out evacuation zones under a blanket of silence, Iran\u2019s authoritarian internet will be judged to be the superior version.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--article--article-body-component\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1ymtmqpi _17nnmdy1 _17nnmdy0 _17nnmdya _1xwtict1\">Seen in another light, YouTube\u2019s suspension of the Explosive Media channel that hosted Iran\u2019s viral Lego slop was America\u2019s own response to Iran\u2019s blackout \u2014 an American company throttling access to an outsider\u2019s message. It\u2019s an uncharitable read, but one that should be considered against the backdrop of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/features\/761076\/gaza-images-starvation-tiktok-ban\">forced sale of TikTok<\/a>, which consolidates American internet architecture too, shoring up American digital sovereignty that could <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/21355465\/tiktok-us-china-information-nationalism-online-propaganda\">once be taken for granted<\/a> thanks to the ascendancy of Silicon Valley. In this war, Iran met the United States where it was, fighting brainrot with brainrot, holding up an uncanny mirror to the American government. And like a gorilla fighting with its own reflection, America is poised to take things farther, maybe already seeing the possibilities in the Iranian internet strategy.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tly2fw0\"><span class=\"tly2fw2\"><strong>Follow topics and authors<\/strong> from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"tly2fw3\">\n<li id=\"follow-author-article_footer-dmcyOmF1dGhvclByb2ZpbGU6MTE3OA==\"><span aria-expanded=\"false\" role=\"button\"><span class=\"gnx4pm0 _4hoiss4 _1xwtict5 _1618ekm0\"><span class=\"_1ajq89k1 _1ajq89k0\"><\/span><span class=\"_1618ekm8\">Sarah Jeong<\/span><\/span><\/span><br \/>\n<aside id=\"popover-dmcyOmF1dGhvclByb2ZpbGU6MTE3OA==-article_footer\" style=\"position:absolute;left:0;top:0\" class=\"_1wu3rm0 _6ytxv90\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm1\"><button class=\"_1wu3rm3\"><title>Close<\/title><\/button><\/p>\n<div class=\"_1bw37384\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Sarah Jeong\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"_1bw37385 x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/chorus\/author_profile_images\/195220\/jbareham_171019_2072_0099..0.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=0%2C0%2C100%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm5 _1bw37380\">Sarah Jeong<\/div>\n<div class=\"_1bw37381\">\n<div class=\"_1bw37382\">Features Editor<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"fv263x1\">Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n<p><button class=\"duet--cta--button _1f7jm891 _1f7jm890 fv263x2 _1f7jm89g\"><span><title>Follow<\/title><\/span><span>Follow<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"fv263x4\"><a class=\"fv263x5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/authors\/sarah-jeong\">See All by <!-- -->Sarah Jeong<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div id=\"follow-category-article_footer-dmcyOmNhdGVnb3J5OjEwMg==\"><button aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-haspopup=\"true\"><span class=\"gnx4pm0 _4hoiss4 _1xwtict5 _1618ekm0\"><span class=\"_1ajq89k1 _1ajq89k0\"><\/span><span class=\"_1618ekm8\">AI<\/span><\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<aside id=\"popover-dmcyOmNhdGVnb3J5OjEwMg==-article_footer\" style=\"position:absolute;left:0;top:0\" class=\"_1wu3rm0 _6ytxv90\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm1\"><button class=\"_1wu3rm3\"><title>Close<\/title><\/button><\/p>\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm5\">AI<\/div>\n<p class=\"fv263x1\">Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n<p><button class=\"duet--cta--button _1f7jm891 _1f7jm890 fv263x2 _1f7jm89g\"><span><title>Follow<\/title><\/span><span>Follow<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"fv263x4\"><a class=\"fv263x5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/ai-artificial-intelligence\">See All <!-- -->AI<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div id=\"follow-category-article_footer-dmcyOmNhdGVnb3J5OjEwNg==\"><button aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-haspopup=\"true\"><span class=\"gnx4pm0 _4hoiss4 _1xwtict5 _1618ekm0\"><span class=\"_1ajq89k1 _1ajq89k0\"><\/span><span class=\"_1618ekm8\">Policy<\/span><\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<aside id=\"popover-dmcyOmNhdGVnb3J5OjEwNg==-article_footer\" style=\"position:absolute;left:0;top:0\" class=\"_1wu3rm0 _6ytxv90\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm1\"><button class=\"_1wu3rm3\"><title>Close<\/title><\/button><\/p>\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm5\">Policy<\/div>\n<p class=\"fv263x1\">Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n<p><button class=\"duet--cta--button _1f7jm891 _1f7jm890 fv263x2 _1f7jm89g\"><span><title>Follow<\/title><\/span><span>Follow<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"fv263x4\"><a class=\"fv263x5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/policy\">See All <!-- -->Policy<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div id=\"follow-category-article_footer-dmcyOmNhdGVnb3J5OjEyMw==\"><button aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-haspopup=\"true\"><span class=\"gnx4pm0 _4hoiss4 _1xwtict5 _1618ekm0\"><span class=\"_1ajq89k1 _1ajq89k0\"><\/span><span class=\"_1618ekm8\">Politics<\/span><\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<aside id=\"popover-dmcyOmNhdGVnb3J5OjEyMw==-article_footer\" style=\"position:absolute;left:0;top:0\" class=\"_1wu3rm0 _6ytxv90\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm1\"><button class=\"_1wu3rm3\"><title>Close<\/title><\/button><\/p>\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm5\">Politics<\/div>\n<p class=\"fv263x1\">Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n<p><button class=\"duet--cta--button _1f7jm891 _1f7jm890 fv263x2 _1f7jm89g\"><span><title>Follow<\/title><\/span><span>Follow<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"fv263x4\"><a class=\"fv263x5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/politics\">See All <!-- -->Politics<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div id=\"follow-category-article_footer-dmcyOmNhdGVnb3J5OjQ1Mw==\"><button aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-haspopup=\"true\"><span class=\"gnx4pm0 _4hoiss4 _1xwtict5 _1618ekm0\"><span class=\"_1ajq89k1 _1ajq89k0\"><\/span><span class=\"_1618ekm8\">Report<\/span><\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<aside id=\"popover-dmcyOmNhdGVnb3J5OjQ1Mw==-article_footer\" style=\"position:absolute;left:0;top:0\" class=\"_1wu3rm0 _6ytxv90\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm1\"><button class=\"_1wu3rm3\"><title>Close<\/title><\/button><\/p>\n<div class=\"_1wu3rm5\">Report<\/div>\n<p class=\"fv263x1\">Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n<p><button class=\"duet--cta--button _1f7jm891 _1f7jm890 fv263x2 _1f7jm89g\"><span><title>Follow<\/title><\/span><span>Follow<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"fv263x4\"><a class=\"fv263x5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/report\">See All <!-- -->Report<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--layout--rail _1xql9yl0 _1xql9yl1\">\n<div class=\"_1xql9yl2 _1xql9yl4 _1xql9yl8\">\n<div class=\"_10nsm931q _10nsm930 _10nsm932c\">\n<div class=\"_10nsm930 _10nsm931r\" data-concert=\"medium_rectangle_variable\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"_1xql9yl2 _1xql9yl5 _1xql9yl8\">\n<div class=\"duet--layout--header-pattern _1ymtmqpg _1xql9yl7\">\n<div class=\"mq7s703\">\n<div class=\"duet--layout--page-header wh8b410\">\n<div class=\"wh8b41i wh8b41f\">\n<h2 class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup wh8b41n wh8b41m _1xwtict2\">Most Popular<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"sticky-nav-trigger\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"mq7s704\">\n<div class=\"_1joemdy0\">\n<div class=\"_1joemdyd _1vx82920\">Most Popular<\/div>\n<ol class=\"_1joemdy1\">\n<li class=\"_1joemdy4 _1joemdy3\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/tech\/909140\/microsoft-windows-11-fixes-macbook-neo-response-notepad\">\n<div class=\"_1joemdya _1joemdy9\">The MacBook Neo is the best thing to happen to Windows in years<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"_1joemdy7 _1joemdy6 _1ymtmqpz\"><\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"_1joemdy4 _1joemdy3\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/news\/909640\/microsoft-removing-copilot-windows-11-buttons\">\n<div class=\"_1joemdya _1joemdy9\">Microsoft starts removing Copilot buttons from Windows 11 apps<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"_1joemdy7 _1joemdy6 _1ymtmqpz\"><\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"_1joemdy4 _1joemdy3\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/streaming\/909698\/youtube-premium-price-hike-us\">\n<div class=\"_1joemdya _1joemdy9\">YouTube Premium is getting pricier<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"_1joemdy7 _1joemdy6 _1ymtmqpz\"><\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"_1joemdy4 _1joemdy3\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/tech\/908328\/macbook-neo-windows-laptop-competitors-asus-lenovo-acer-review-comparison\">\n<div class=\"_1joemdya _1joemdy9\">I tested three Windows laptops in the MacBook Neo\u2019s price range \u2014 there\u2019s no contest<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"_1joemdy7 _1joemdy6 _1ymtmqpz\"><\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"_1joemdy4 _1joemdy3\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/ai-artificial-intelligence\/909948\/explosive-media-lego-iran-war-trump-netanyahu\">\n<div class=\"_1joemdya _1joemdy9\">The Iranian Lego AI video creators credit their virality to \u2018heart\u2019<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"_1xql9yl2 _1xql9yl8\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"_10nsm9324 _10nsm930 _10nsm932c\">\n<div class=\"_10nsm930 _10nsm9325\" data-concert=\"medium_rectangle_gamestop_desktop\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"_10nsm9320 _10nsm930 _10nsm932c\">\n<div class=\"_10nsm930 _10nsm9321\" data-concert=\"connatix_right_rail\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"_1xql9yl2 _1xql9yl6 _1xql9yl8\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"duet--cta--newsletter a18g6g9\">\n<div class=\"a18g6gd\">\n<h2 class=\"a18g6gh\">The Verge Daily<\/h2>\n<p class=\"a18g6gi\"><span class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup\">A free daily digest of the news that matters most.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"a18g6gy a18g6gz\">\n<fieldset>\n<div class=\"a18g6g12 a18g6g11\">\n<div class=\"a18g6g16 a18g6g1e\">\n<div class=\"duet--cta--form-field-text _1i902bu0\"><label for=\"email\" class=\"_1pbfapu0 _1yjvsxi0\">Email (required)<\/label><\/p>\n<div class=\"_1i902bu1\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><button class=\"duet--cta--button _1f7jm892 _1f7jm890 a18g6g1l\" type=\"submit\"><span>Sign Up<\/span><\/button><\/div>\n<\/fieldset>\n<div class=\"a18g6g1q\">\n<div class=\"a18g6gj\">By submitting your email, you agree to our<!-- --> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.voxmedia.com\/legal\/terms-of-use\" class=\"a18g6g1p\">Terms<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.voxmedia.com\/legal\/privacy-notice\" class=\"a18g6g1p\">Privacy Notice<\/a>. <!-- -->This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google<!-- --> <a href=\"https:\/\/policies.google.com\/privacy\" class=\"a18g6g1p\">Privacy Policy<\/a> <!-- -->and<!-- --> <a href=\"https:\/\/policies.google.com\/terms\" class=\"a18g6g1p\">Terms of Service<\/a> <!-- -->apply.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--ad--native-ad-rail _8tvx5mb hidden _1xql9yl8 _1xql9yl2\" data-native-ad-id=\"container\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"visually-hidden\">\n<div class=\"dynamic-native-ad-native_ad_latest\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/\" aria-label=\"Native Ad Placement\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"_8tvx5m0\">\n<div class=\"_8tvx5mc\"><span data-native-ad-id=\"preamble\" class=\"_8tvx5m8\">Advertiser Content From<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"_8tvx5mh\"><img data-native-ad-id=\"sponsored_logo\" src alt=\"Sponsor Logo\" class=\"_8tvx5mg\"><\/div>\n<p class=\"_8tvx5mj\" data-native-ad-id=\"title\">This is the title for the native ad<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"_8tvx5md\">\n<div class=\"_8tvx5me\"><img data-native-ad-id=\"thumbnail\" src alt=\"Sponsor thumbnail\" class=\"_8tvx5mf\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"_1xql9yl2 _1xql9yl8\">\n<div class=\"_10nsm931w _10nsm930 _10nsm932c\">\n<div class=\"_10nsm930 _10nsm931x\" data-concert=\"btf_medium_rectangle_variable\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"duet--layout--article-recirc-color-container n5bh2k0\">\n<div class=\"duet--layout--article-recirc n5bh2k1 _1ymtmqp3\">\n<div class=\"n5bh2k3\">\n<div class=\"n5bh2k4\">\n<div class=\"duet--layout--header-pattern mq7s702\">\n<div class=\"mq7s703\">\n<div class=\"duet--layout--page-header wh8b410\">\n<div class=\"wh8b41j wh8b41f\">\n<h2 class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup wh8b41o wh8b41m _1xwtict2\">More in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/policy\">Policy<\/a><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"sticky-nav-trigger\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"mq7s704\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"_1owd140\">\n<div class>\n<div class=\"duet--content-cards--content-card _184mfto0 _1lkmsmo3\">\n<div class=\"_184mfto5 _184mfton _184mfto8 _10f040q3\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Now the FAA says gamers are the answer to its air traffic controller shortage\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/gettyimages-2265481258.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=0.0052061640982899%2C0%2C99.989587671803%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><\/div>\n<div class>\n<div class=\"_184mfto4\">\n<div>\n<div>\n<div class><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"_1xwtict9 _1pm20r57 _1pm20r50\"><a class=\"_1lkmsmo0 _1lkmsmo4 _1lkmsmo5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/games\/910434\/now-the-faa-says-gamers-are-the-answer-to-its-air-traffic-controller-shortage\">Now the FAA says gamers are the answer to its air traffic controller shortage<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class>\n<div class=\"duet--content-cards--content-card _184mfto0 _1lkmsmo3\">\n<div class=\"_184mfto5 _184mfton _184mfto8 _10f040q3\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"The Iranian Lego AI video creators credit their virality to \u2018heart\u2019\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/LEGO_IRAN.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=0%2C0%2C100%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><\/div>\n<div class>\n<div class=\"_184mfto4\">\n<div>\n<div>\n<div class><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"_1xwtict9 _1pm20r57 _1pm20r50\"><a class=\"_1lkmsmo0 _1lkmsmo4 _1lkmsmo5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/ai-artificial-intelligence\/909948\/explosive-media-lego-iran-war-trump-netanyahu\">The Iranian Lego AI video creators credit their virality to \u2018heart\u2019<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class>\n<div class=\"duet--content-cards--content-card _184mfto0 _1lkmsmo3\">\n<div class=\"_184mfto5 _184mfton _184mfto8 _10f040q3\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Congress can finally close a mass surveillance loophole \u2014 but will they?\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/STK471_Government_Surveillance_CVirginia_E.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=0%2C0%2C100%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><\/div>\n<div class>\n<div class=\"_184mfto4\">\n<div>\n<div>\n<div class><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"_1xwtict9 _1pm20r57 _1pm20r50\"><a class=\"_1lkmsmo0 _1lkmsmo4 _1lkmsmo5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/policy\/909229\/fisa-702-reauthorization-davidson-wyden-warrant-reforms\">Congress can finally close a mass surveillance loophole \u2014 but will they?<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class>\n<div class=\"duet--content-cards--content-card _184mfto0 _1lkmsmo3\">\n<div class=\"_184mfto5 _184mfton _184mfto8 _10f040q3\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Trump Mobile isn\u2019t giving up just yet\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Vrg_illo_trump_phone_np2.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=0%2C0%2C100%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><\/div>\n<div class>\n<div class=\"_184mfto4\">\n<div>\n<div>\n<div class><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"_1xwtict9 _1pm20r57 _1pm20r50\"><a class=\"_1lkmsmo0 _1lkmsmo4 _1lkmsmo5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/tech\/909846\/trump-mobile-phone-47-plan-trademark-registration\">Trump Mobile isn\u2019t giving up just yet<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class>\n<div class=\"duet--content-cards--content-card _184mfto0 _1lkmsmo3\">\n<div class=\"_184mfto5 _184mfton _184mfto8 _10f040q3\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Florida launches investigation into OpenAI\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/02\/STK155_OPEN_AI_2025_CVirgiia_C.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=0%2C0%2C100%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><\/div>\n<div class>\n<div class=\"_184mfto4\">\n<div>\n<div>\n<div class><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"_1xwtict9 _1pm20r57 _1pm20r50\"><a class=\"_1lkmsmo0 _1lkmsmo4 _1lkmsmo5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/policy\/909557\/openai-florida-investigation\">Florida launches investigation into OpenAI<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class>\n<div class=\"duet--content-cards--content-card _184mfto0 _1lkmsmo3\">\n<div class=\"_184mfto5 _184mfton _184mfto8 _10f040q3\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"John Deere will pay farmers $99 million over right-to-repair lawsuit\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/gettyimages-1414200171.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=0%2C0%2C100%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><\/div>\n<div class>\n<div class=\"_184mfto4\">\n<div>\n<div>\n<div class><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"_1xwtict9 _1pm20r57 _1pm20r50\"><a class=\"_1lkmsmo0 _1lkmsmo4 _1lkmsmo5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/policy\/909524\/john-deere-class-action-settlement-farmers\">John Deere will pay farmers $99 million over right-to-repair lawsuit<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"_1owd142\">\n<div class=\"duet--content-cards--content-card _1ufh7nr1 _1ufh7nr0 _1lkmsmo3 _1ufh7nrj _1ufh7nr5\">\n<div class=\"_1ufh7nr7 _1ufh7nr6 _1ufh7nrc _1ufh7nrh _10f040q3\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Now the FAA says gamers are the answer to its air traffic controller shortage\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"_1ufh7nrf x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/gettyimages-2265481258.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=16.670137442732%2C0%2C66.659725114536%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Now the FAA says gamers are the answer to its air traffic controller shortage\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"_1ufh7nrg x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/gettyimages-2265481258.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=0.0052061640982899%2C0%2C99.989587671803%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"_1ufh7nri\">\n<div>\n<div>\n<div class><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"_1xwtict9 _1pm20r53 _1pm20r50\"><a class=\"_1lkmsmo0 _1lkmsmo4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/games\/910434\/now-the-faa-says-gamers-are-the-answer-to-its-air-traffic-controller-shortage\">Now the FAA says gamers are the answer to its air traffic controller shortage<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"_2xqpwjd _2xqpwj0\"><span><span class=\"_1lldluw2 _1xwtict5\"><span><span>Jay Peters<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><span class=\"duet--article--timestamp tvl9dp2 tvl9dp0 _1xwtict5 _1ymtmqps\"><time datetime=\"2026-04-10T20:50:51+00:00\">Apr 10<\/time><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--content-cards--content-card _1ufh7nr1 _1ufh7nr0 _1lkmsmo3 _1ufh7nr5\">\n<div class=\"_1ufh7nr7 _1ufh7nr6 _1ufh7nrc _1ufh7nrh _10f040q3\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"The Iranian Lego AI video creators credit their virality to \u2018heart\u2019\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"_1ufh7nrf x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/LEGO_IRAN.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=16.666666666667%2C0%2C66.666666666667%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"The Iranian Lego AI video creators credit their virality to \u2018heart\u2019\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"_1ufh7nrg x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/LEGO_IRAN.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=0%2C0%2C100%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"_1ufh7nri\">\n<div>\n<div>\n<div class><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"_1xwtict9 _1pm20r53 _1pm20r50\"><a class=\"_1lkmsmo0 _1lkmsmo4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/ai-artificial-intelligence\/909948\/explosive-media-lego-iran-war-trump-netanyahu\">The Iranian Lego AI video creators credit their virality to \u2018heart\u2019<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"_2xqpwjd _2xqpwj0\"><span><span class=\"_1lldluw2 _1xwtict5\"><span><span>Charles Pulliam-Moore<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><span class=\"duet--article--timestamp tvl9dp2 tvl9dp0 _1xwtict5 _1ymtmqps\"><time datetime=\"2026-04-10T17:30:00+00:00\">Apr 10<\/time><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--content-cards--content-card _1ufh7nr1 _1ufh7nr0 _1lkmsmo3 _1ufh7nr5\">\n<div class=\"_1ufh7nr7 _1ufh7nr6 _1ufh7nrc _1ufh7nrh _10f040q3\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Congress can finally close a mass surveillance loophole \u2014 but will they?\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"_1ufh7nrf x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/STK471_Government_Surveillance_CVirginia_E.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=16.666666666667%2C0%2C66.666666666667%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Congress can finally close a mass surveillance loophole \u2014 but will they?\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"_1ufh7nrg x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/STK471_Government_Surveillance_CVirginia_E.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=0%2C0%2C100%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"_1ufh7nri\">\n<div>\n<div>\n<div class><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"_1xwtict9 _1pm20r53 _1pm20r50\"><a class=\"_1lkmsmo0 _1lkmsmo4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/policy\/909229\/fisa-702-reauthorization-davidson-wyden-warrant-reforms\">Congress can finally close a mass surveillance loophole \u2014 but will they?<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"_2xqpwjd _2xqpwj0\"><span><span class=\"_1lldluw2 _1xwtict5\"><span><span>Gaby Del Valle<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><span class=\"duet--article--timestamp tvl9dp2 tvl9dp0 _1xwtict5 _1ymtmqps\"><time datetime=\"2026-04-10T15:45:00+00:00\">Apr 10<\/time><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--content-cards--content-card _1ufh7nr1 _1ufh7nr0 _1lkmsmo3 _1ufh7nr5\">\n<div class=\"_1ufh7nr7 _1ufh7nr6 _1ufh7nrc _1ufh7nrh _10f040q3\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Trump Mobile isn\u2019t giving up just yet\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"_1ufh7nrf x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Vrg_illo_trump_phone_np2.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=16.666666666667%2C0%2C66.666666666667%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Trump Mobile isn\u2019t giving up just yet\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"_1ufh7nrg x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Vrg_illo_trump_phone_np2.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=0%2C0%2C100%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"_1ufh7nri\">\n<div>\n<div>\n<div class><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"_1xwtict9 _1pm20r53 _1pm20r50\"><a class=\"_1lkmsmo0 _1lkmsmo4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/tech\/909846\/trump-mobile-phone-47-plan-trademark-registration\">Trump Mobile isn\u2019t giving up just yet<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"_2xqpwjd _2xqpwj0\"><span><span class=\"_1lldluw2 _1xwtict5\"><span><span>Dominic Preston<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><span class=\"duet--article--timestamp tvl9dp2 tvl9dp0 _1xwtict5 _1ymtmqps\"><time datetime=\"2026-04-10T15:12:41+00:00\">Apr 10<\/time><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--content-cards--content-card _1ufh7nr1 _1ufh7nr0 _1lkmsmo3 _1ufh7nr5\">\n<div class=\"_1ufh7nr7 _1ufh7nr6 _1ufh7nrc _1ufh7nrh _10f040q3\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Florida launches investigation into OpenAI\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"_1ufh7nrf x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/02\/STK155_OPEN_AI_2025_CVirgiia_C.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=16.666666666667%2C0%2C66.666666666667%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Florida launches investigation into OpenAI\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"_1ufh7nrg x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/02\/STK155_OPEN_AI_2025_CVirgiia_C.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=0%2C0%2C100%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"_1ufh7nri\">\n<div>\n<div>\n<div class><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"_1xwtict9 _1pm20r53 _1pm20r50\"><a class=\"_1lkmsmo0 _1lkmsmo4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/policy\/909557\/openai-florida-investigation\">Florida launches investigation into OpenAI<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"_2xqpwjd _2xqpwj0\"><span><span class=\"_1lldluw2 _1xwtict5\"><span><span>Emma Roth<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><span class=\"duet--article--timestamp tvl9dp2 tvl9dp0 _1xwtict5 _1ymtmqps\"><time datetime=\"2026-04-09T22:17:06+00:00\">Apr 9<\/time><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--content-cards--content-card _1ufh7nr1 _1ufh7nr0 _1lkmsmo3 _1ufh7nrk _1ufh7nrl _1ufh7nr5\">\n<div class=\"_1ufh7nr7 _1ufh7nr6 _1ufh7nrc _1ufh7nrh _10f040q3\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"John Deere will pay farmers $99 million over right-to-repair lawsuit\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"_1ufh7nrf x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/gettyimages-1414200171.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=16.666666666667%2C0%2C66.666666666667%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"John Deere will pay farmers $99 million over right-to-repair lawsuit\" data-chromatic=\"ignore\" loading=\"lazy\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"_1ufh7nrg x271pn0\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;)\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.theverge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/gettyimages-1414200171.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;crop=0%2C0%2C100%2C100&amp;w=2400\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"_1ufh7nri\">\n<div>\n<div>\n<div class><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"_1xwtict9 _1pm20r53 _1pm20r50\"><a class=\"_1lkmsmo0 _1lkmsmo4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/policy\/909524\/john-deere-class-action-settlement-farmers\">John Deere will pay farmers $99 million over right-to-repair lawsuit<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"_2xqpwjd _2xqpwj0\"><span><span class=\"_1lldluw2 _1xwtict5\"><span><span>Emma Roth<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><span class=\"duet--article--timestamp tvl9dp2 tvl9dp0 _1xwtict5 _1ymtmqps\"><time datetime=\"2026-04-09T21:21:22+00:00\">Apr 9<\/time><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--ad--native-ad-linkset _8tvx5m4 _8tvx5m5 _8tvx5ma hidden\" data-native-ad-id=\"container\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"visually-hidden\">\n<div class=\"dynamic-native-ad-native_ad_linkset_link\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/\" aria-label=\"Advertisement\"><\/p>\n<div class>\n<div class=\"_8tvx5m7\"><span data-native-ad-id=\"preamble\" class=\"_8tvx5m8 _8tvx5m9\">Advertiser Content From<\/span><\/p>\n<div><img data-native-ad-id=\"logo\" src alt=\"Sponsor Logo\" class=\"_8tvx5mg\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"_8tvx5mj\" data-native-ad-id=\"title\">This is the title for the native ad<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"n5bh2k6\">\n<div class=\"duet--layout--header-pattern mq7s702\">\n<div class=\"mq7s703\">\n<div class=\"duet--layout--page-header wh8b410\">\n<div class=\"wh8b41j wh8b41f\">\n<h2 class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup wh8b41o wh8b41m _1xwtict2\">Top Stories<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"sticky-nav-trigger\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"mq7s704\">\n<div class=\"duet--content-cards--content-card _1ufh7nr0 _1lkmsmo3 _1ufh7nrj _1ufh7nr5\">\n<div class=\"_1ufh7nri\">\n<div>\n<div>\n<div class>\n<div class=\"_2xqpwj4 _2xqpwj0\"><span class=\"duet--article--timestamp tvl9dp7 tvl9dp0 _1xwtict5\"><time datetime=\"2026-04-10T13:01:55+00:00\">Apr 10<\/time><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"_1xwtict9 _1pm20r57 _1pm20r50\"><a class=\"_1lkmsmo0 _1lkmsmo4 _1lkmsmo5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/design\/909710\/artemis-ii-orion-capsule-interior-design\">Interior design at 25,000 mph<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--content-cards--content-card _1ufh7nr0 _1lkmsmo3 _1ufh7nr5\">\n<div class=\"_1ufh7nri\">\n<div>\n<div>\n<div class>\n<div class=\"_2xqpwj4 _2xqpwj0\"><span class=\"duet--article--timestamp tvl9dp7 tvl9dp0 _1xwtict5\"><time datetime=\"2026-04-11T14:00:00+00:00\">An hour ago<\/time><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"_1xwtict9 _1pm20r57 _1pm20r50\"><a class=\"_1lkmsmo0 _1lkmsmo4 _1lkmsmo5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/ai-artificial-intelligence\/910008\/fawn-friends-ai-companion\">My baby deer plushie told me that Mitski\u2019s dad was a CIA operative<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--content-cards--content-card _1ufh7nr0 _1lkmsmo3 _1ufh7nr5\">\n<div class=\"_1ufh7nri\">\n<div>\n<div>\n<div class>\n<div class=\"_2xqpwj4 _2xqpwj0\"><span class=\"duet--article--timestamp tvl9dp7 tvl9dp0 _1xwtict5\"><time datetime=\"2026-04-11T11:00:00+00:00\">11:00 AM UTC<\/time><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"_1xwtict9 _1pm20r57 _1pm20r50\"><a class=\"_1lkmsmo0 _1lkmsmo4 _1lkmsmo5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/transportation\/909480\/solid-state-battery-donut-lab-ev-china\">Is the \u2018Holy Grail of batteries\u2019 finally ready to bless us with its presence?<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--content-cards--content-card _1ufh7nr0 _1lkmsmo3 _1ufh7nr5\">\n<div class=\"_1ufh7nri\">\n<div>\n<div>\n<div class>\n<div class=\"_2xqpwj4 _2xqpwj0\"><span class=\"duet--article--timestamp tvl9dp7 tvl9dp0 _1xwtict5\"><time datetime=\"2026-04-10T17:30:00+00:00\">Apr 10<\/time><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"_1xwtict9 _1pm20r57 _1pm20r50\"><a class=\"_1lkmsmo0 _1lkmsmo4 _1lkmsmo5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/ai-artificial-intelligence\/909948\/explosive-media-lego-iran-war-trump-netanyahu\">The Iranian Lego AI video creators credit their virality to \u2018heart\u2019<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--content-cards--content-card _1ufh7nr0 _1lkmsmo3 _1ufh7nr5\">\n<div class=\"_1ufh7nri\">\n<div>\n<div>\n<div class>\n<div class=\"_2xqpwj4 _2xqpwj0\"><span class=\"duet--article--timestamp tvl9dp7 tvl9dp0 _1xwtict5\"><time datetime=\"2026-04-10T14:00:00+00:00\">Apr 10<\/time><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"_1xwtict9 _1pm20r57 _1pm20r50\"><a class=\"_1lkmsmo0 _1lkmsmo4 _1lkmsmo5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/column\/909736\/optimizer-whoop-oura-wearable-hype-cycle\">Why your Whoop might tell you to up your testosterone<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"duet--content-cards--content-card _1ufh7nr0 _1lkmsmo3 _1ufh7nrk _1ufh7nrl _1ufh7nr5\">\n<div class=\"_1ufh7nri\">\n<div>\n<div>\n<div class>\n<div class=\"_2xqpwj4 _2xqpwj0\"><span class=\"duet--article--timestamp tvl9dp7 tvl9dp0 _1xwtict5\"><time datetime=\"2026-04-11T15:07:47+00:00\">11 seconds ago<\/time><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"_1xwtict9 _1pm20r57 _1pm20r50\"><a class=\"_1lkmsmo0 _1lkmsmo4 _1lkmsmo5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/tech\/910691\/google-news-polymarket-bets-error\">Google says Polymarket bets showing up in News was an \u2018error\u2019<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/main><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Policy Close Policy Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. FollowFollow See All Policy AI Close AI Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. FollowFollow See All AI Report Close Report Posts from this topic will be [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,250],"class_list":["post-1877408","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-theverge-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1877408","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1877408"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1877408\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1877408"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1877408"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1877408"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}